If you’re like us over here at The Help HQ, you probably have quite a full workday ahead of you and are thinking of ways to be as productive as you can with the little time you have. Here’s something we all know but have a hard time putting in practice: productivity is not about spending more time working BUT rather, it is working on things that matter to your work.

Here are 5 tips to improve your focus and be more productive today:

Scan your surroundings

If your environment itself is distracting, then you surely are going to be distracted. Take control of your surroundings so that you can focus on work that matters. If you work in an office, clear your desk of visual noise. If you work from home, have a dedicated workspace and try not to work on the dinner table. Remove clutter. All you really need is your laptop – or monitor, mouse, and keyboard, the rest are aesthetics. 

Try time management strategies

If you don’t have a favorite time management strategy yet, we’ve outlined 6 of the best time management strategies here. pick one and try it on for size. See which one works best with your work style.

Eliminate “busy” work

Busy work is doing tasks for the sake of being busy. However, these tasks do not add any value to your work goals. Some examples are: making copies, typing texts that can be copy-pasted, doing design work that can be created from templates, etc. We’re all guilty of doing this. You know which ones you’re guilty of. Do an audit of your daily tasks and eliminate those that are unimportant so that you have more time to get real work done. There’s no point in doing busy work for the sake of being busy.

Know your peak productivity hours

If you have the ability to schedule your meeting, schedule them in blocks around your most productive times so that you can take advantage of your peak productivity hours. If you’re more productive in the morning, schedule meetings in the afternoon and vice versa. This way you have uninterrupted time to focus on important work.

Say NO

If you’re overwhelmed with work, say NO. get into the habit of saying no to things, people, projects, favors, suggestions, etc that do not add value to your work goals. If you want to increase productivity, you must be clear about your priorities. Don’t say yes to things that will overfill your plate or do not even have time for right now. This isn’t about you not being a team player, this is about you having boundaries and focusing on your purpose. If you can’t say no, at least learn to say “not right now” until you learn to decline new work.

What are your top productivity tips that guarantee success? Share them with us in the comments. Remember to work smart and be a blessing to someone today. Stay safe and healthy!

Written by Jaie O. TheHelp